Chapter 221: Lainella's Fate is Decided by Lainella (14)
Chapter 221: Lainella's Fate is Decided by Lainella (14)
The Princess immediately grew dejected at my scolding.
Of course, I didn't want to belittle her efforts. She had even struck a dainty pose in her own attempt to mimic a puppy.
It wasn't easy for a woman of noble birth to endure such humiliation.
It was the sight of royalty acting like a puppy in front of a lower noble of the Empire. Despite the clear difference in social status, the Princess was essentially performing tricks for me.
After all, a puppy is a creature that instinctively craves human affection.
It was a relief that there were no passersby. Had the Academy not been on break, the Princess's honor would have been dragged through the mud once again.
The weight of a Princess acting like a dog was that significant.
To be honest, I found it difficult to fathom why she was doing this. However, seeing a pretty girl acting cute, I had to admit it was objectively adorable.
That is, if it weren't for the incident this morning.
I already had a headache from Senior Elsie’s "pet" declaration. With the Princess poking at that memory, there was no way I could give her a positive reaction.
When I didn't respond well, the Princess immediately lowered her head.
"I-I'm sorry... I heard rumors that Sir Ian enjoys treating women like dogs..."
"That is absolutely not true!"
I reflexively raised my voice at the preposterous misunderstanding.
Startled, the Princess looked at me blankly, her eyes wide with surprise.
"That's all just baseless rumors. I mean, there was a misunderstanding..."
"...A-Ah!"
The Princess, who had been observing me intently with her pale gray pupils, nodded as if she had reached a realization.
"It was a secret! That makes sense. Then I'll only act like a puppy when we're alone..."
"Your Highness."
The Princess tilted her head. By now, my voice had turned cold.
"Do people often tell you that you're clueless?"
The girl’s shoulders slumped once again.
"I-I'm sorry, Sir Ian... You looked so gloomy today, I just wanted to cheer you up."
"It's truly remarkable that the result of that consideration was acting like a dog."
"If Sir Ian wants, I can do much more!"
The Princess straightened her back with a boastful air.
She looked quite proud of herself for saying that.
Though I had no idea what there was to be proud of.
"I-I'll do whatever you tell me! So, if you really need a puppy, instead of Miss Elsie..."
"I told you, that's not it."
"...Y-Yes."
However, the Princess's triumphant expression vanished shortly after. It was because of the annoyed tone in my voice.
She shrank back and cautiously watched my reaction.
Still, since she hadn't approached me with ill intentions, it was hard to stay angry. In the end, a deep sigh escaped my lips.
To change the subject, I asked her a fundamental question.
"But is that all you wanted? There was no need for Your Highness to come all this way just to cheer me up..."
"O-Of course, I didn't think someone like me could actually cheer Sir Ian up."
It was a dejected excuse.
Regret flickered across the Princess's somewhat somber face. Since our first meeting had been so poor, she had taken a subservient attitude every time she faced me afterward.
This was true even though I no longer held any ill will regarding her past mistakes.
Honestly, I had been angry when I heard the news that my younger sister's merchant guild had gone bankrupt.
But the letter from my sister that reached me just in time helped calm my rage. Although I couldn't reveal it yet because she said it was confidential, my sister was still doing well.
She might have been annoyed by the bankruptcy, but she had avoided a fatal blow.
My sister was always like that.
She was so resourceful that she always responded nimbly to crises. Even if she couldn't completely weather the storm, she wasn't the type to sit back and calmly accept approaching death.
I would have to hear the details once I returned to the territory.
Recalling the short warning written in the letter—'Just you wait'—a bitter smile spread across my face.
I felt ashamed to be such a pathetic older brother.
However, the Princess, who had no way of knowing the contents of the letter I received, was still hesitating.
"Um... Sir Ian, do you happen to know where Irene went?"
I fell silent for a moment at the sudden question.
'Irene.' No matter how much I searched my memory, no one came to mind. Thinking there might be a mistake, I asked the Princess back.
"...'Irene'?"
"Ah! I mean, the female knight who was always by my side."
The Princess seemed a bit flustered by my puzzled reaction, but she quickly added a supplementary explanation. Thanks to that, a person flickered into my mind.
The beautiful female knight with blue hair.
She seemed to be the Princess's closest confidante, so it was even more puzzling that she was asking me about her whereabouts. I let out a low hum and asked.
"Why are you asking me about her whereabouts...?"
The Princess wore a blank expression for a moment at my question, then hurriedly began to spill what she knew.
"O-Oh? Irene definitely said she was going to see Sir Ian..."
It seemed that the knight named 'Irene' had indeed come to find me. I didn't know the reason, but there was only one conclusion I could draw right now.
The female knight came to see me. And I had absolutely no memory of it.
Then the answer was obvious.
Pressing down on my throbbing head once again, I asked the Princess a question.
"When exactly was that?"
The Princess looked anxious, fearing she might have offended me. After glancing at me several times, she spoke in a timid voice.
"I-It was two days ago..."
I knew it.
Sighing again, I held my head.
Two days ago was before I had regained my senses.
In other words, Sir Irene had met not me, but the 'me' from the future.
In truth, even if Sir Irene had gone missing, there was nothing I could do.
My memories of that time had evaporated, and there were no witnesses to the encounter between 'me' and Sir Irene. What happened then was destined to remain a mystery.
So, for now, I decided to put that matter out of my mind.
However, since she had left a note saying she was going on a knight's pilgrimage after meeting 'me,' I could only guess when we might meet again.
If I ever saw Sir Irene again, only then would I hear the truth of that day.
Tomorrow was the day I would return home.
As the sun began to set, I went looking for the last person I needed to say goodbye to.
It was Emma from the Alchemy Department.
During the last attack, I was able to secure victory thanks to Emma's potions. Besides that, Emma and I had grown quite close over the past few months, so it was only right to see her and say goodbye before leaving.
However, a sliver of anxiety remained within me.
The reason I hadn't been able to visit Emma until now stemmed from that anxiety, which was lodged in my heart like a thorn.
Lady Ruphesia had encouraged me to go see Emma.
On the day I was discharged, Emma hadn't shown her face.
She was a kind and worrying person. There was no way she wouldn't have known the discharge date of a close friend. Naturally, I thought I would be able to greet Emma that day.
But Emma had chosen not to see me.
I already knew there must have been a reason for it.
Because it was Emma's choice, after all.
Nevertheless, I couldn't help but worry about her. She was a woman who was as strict with herself as she was kind to others.
She was likely blaming herself over a simple misunderstanding.
With somewhat hurried steps, I inquired about Emma's whereabouts. First of all, Emma wasn't in the dormitory.
If so, there was only one place she would be.
My path led to Emma's workshop.
The research building of the Alchemy Department still showed signs of life despite the break. Even if students went back to their hometowns, they couldn't do anything if they didn't have research facilities.
In that case, it was better to stay at the Academy and continue their research.
Many of the students remaining here were likely commoners in such circumstances.
Fortunately, Emma seemed to be one of them.
A faint scent of medicine wafted from Emma's workshop. It meant that research had been conducted in the workshop until at least recently.
I couldn't sense anyone inside yet.
Still, based on various sightings, it seemed clear that Emma was inside the workshop.
I breathed a sigh of relief and knocked on the workshop door.
"Emma, it's me."
My voice followed the sound of the rhythmic knocking. However, no matter how long I waited, there was no answer.
Does she not want to see me?
My movements grew more urgent, tinged with a slight sense of unease. It didn't take long before I was knocking again.
"Emma, are you okay? I thought I should say goodbye..."
But no matter how many times I knocked and called her name, Emma didn't respond.
For a moment, I doubted the sightings I had heard.
Had Emma left the workshop again?
Mana spread through my body, sharpening my senses. My heightened nerves simultaneously projected the scene beyond the door.
It was quiet inside. A faint scent of medicine drifted out, and the sound of liquid bubbling could be heard.
There wasn't much else I could discern.
That is, if I hadn't reached the level of an Expert.
My advanced senses finally captured the sign I was looking for.
I heard a faint sound of breathing.
It was so weak that one might believe no one was in the workshop at all. It wasn't the breath of a healthy human being.
My mind went blank.
"...Emma? Are you really okay?"
There was no change in the breathing coming from inside the workshop.
If she didn't want to see me, there should have been some change the moment she heard my voice. But I sensed no reaction from Emma.
It was as if she couldn't hear my voice.
Reaching that conclusion, my mind turned white.
"Emma!"
I immediately kicked the door with mana-infused strength. With a thunderous boom, the door shattered into fragments.
As I hurriedly tore away the remains of the door and stepped inside, the scene of the workshop flashed before my eyes.
Countless research materials, alchemy ingredients, and bubbling potions told me that Emma's research had been ongoing in real-time.
And in the midst of it all, a red-haired woman lay collapsed, her face deathly pale.
Emma had fainted.